Movie Muse - Erin Expounds

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Monday, November 21, 2016

So my first "real" post since turning 40 will be about (what else) movies! We took advantage of shipping the child off on a camping trip to spend the better part of 24 hours at the movie theater. And we had a great time! I have honestly been rather disappointed at the movie theater of late, so to find four films so very different from each other that we wanted to see, and then to have all four of them turn out to be, at worst, quite good, was quite a (pleasant) shock!

Doctor Strange was good, though not great.The visual effects were extremely well done and were used very effectively, but I had seen them all before in various forms. These may have been "cranked up to 11," but they are not really new or innovative. Still nifty to see, though I would only recommend 3D if you know you can handle it. (I could barely handle parts of it in 2D!) Tilda Swinton was amazing, though, and I'm not always a big fan of hers. Worth seeing, on the big screen if you can, but not in the top 5 (or even top 10) of my favorite Marvel films.

We didn't really have any intention of seeing The Magnificent Seven, though I was intrigued when it came in with a PG-13 rating instead of an R rating. I am a huge Denzel Washington fan, though not generally a big Western fan. I definitely did not care for the original of this movie, but when we looked at the movie times for the day, it worked out easily to see this one first thing in the morning and still get the others in well before dinner. It is the kind of movie we would have gone to see just for the heck of it in our pre-child days, so we gave it a shot, even though we weren't expecting very much from it. And I'm so glad we did! We actually quite enjoyed it, much more than I anticipated. It was fun! And funny! (Though it is not a comedy in any way.) And the James Horner score (his last before his death) is hauntingly beautiful. In this case, I will single out Ethan Hawke's performance. Truly amazing to watch, particularly how he wears a Southern accent completely convincingly, something few actors can pull off at all, much less this effortlessly. Another one worth seeing, though this one can easily wait for home viewing, in my opinion.

I knew going into it that Sully was right up my alley, but even then, it was so very good. It reminds me of Apollo 13 in all kinds of good ways. To paraphrase my brother, "it was very Clint Eastwood, in all the good ways." I loved the weaving in and out of time, and I adore movies that are very suspenseful even when you already know the story. Wonderful performances all around. Kudos to the entire cast! Definitely worth seeing, though again, would be fine for home viewing.

Arrival was the movie I was most curious and concerned about. Given how cryptic they were being in the previews, I figured this was the kind of movie that it was best NOT to know much about before seeing it, and I was right. So if you're interested in seeing it, stop reading about it! Yes, including this review! (Though no spoilers here.) #1 thing to know: this is not an action movie in any way. That's not a bad thing (or it's not to be), as I enjoy well done deliberately paced films (I don't want to call it "slow" due to the negative connotations that go with that when discussing movies). I was also afraid it might be scary or creepy; it was neither. Very different and refreshing, very good, definitely worth seeing.

So, 4 out of 4 on the "worth seeing" scale! An excellent weekend indeed. Let's see if the rest of the year's films can keep up.

Sunday, November 13, 2016

A quick recap of things I really need to actually blog about but haven't had the time, like this (how on earth did we get here?!):

Sixth Grade??!!!

And then we did this not long after (L-R: Kylo, Rey, and Finn, age approximately 10 weeks):

Yes, all siblings. Yes, we're insane.

Which very rapidly turned into this (T-B: Rey, Kylo, and Finn, now approximately 5 months):

From less than a week ago, covering me from hips to ankles.

And we really had no choice but to do this, due to a cracked radiator in our 1999 Camry that would have cost 3 times what the car was worth to repair it:

I can't believe we bought an SUV, even if it is a "crossover." We have been assimilated!

We decided to drop soccer and try this, which is working well so far:

He's slowly but surely getting better.

And then there was this, our last year of eating off the kids' menu:

12??!!!!!

Unfortunately, the party was largely interrupted by this (BIL and SIL did not come with our nieces due to weather , and both my parents and DH's sheltered here while it passed):

Hurricane Matthew aftermath at my parents' house; the house made it through unscathed!

And this (not sure how many more of these I will get):

I hope to blog each of those individually, but at least you're caught up on the last, uh, 3+ months (sorry!). If you're wondering where the stitching pictures are, there hasn't been any stitching since my birthday. A lap full of kittens will do that to you! LOL But I want to snuggle with them for as long as I can while they're little, since they may not be as interested when they get older.

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Yes, I have officially turned 40! Had a great weekend seeing my parents and mother-in-law. We also simultaneously celebrated my husband's 40th birthday, which will occur in a few days. It was a very nice weekend and a great way to start my 40s.

I thought maybe another good way to kick off my 40s would be to try and come back to blogging. I can't promise it will stick, since it was a combination of school and Luke's over the top Harry Potter birthday party that wore me out last year, followed by some other medium to large events both good and bad. I hope to go back and at least blog about a few things from the last 10 months, since I do rely on my blog somewhat to remind me of what happened when. (I can't tell you the number of times I've searched to remember exactly when Luke broke his arm, or how old he was when he hit 4 feet tall, etc. "I shall consult the blog." LOL) However, there is no big party planned for this year (in fact, it may be the smallest ever), and other than the seismic paradigm shift of starting middle school in a couple weeks (YIKES! how did that happen?!), there hopefully isn't anything else major on the horizon for a while.

So, I'm not sure who is still around. I know blogging in general has really fallen off with Facebook and YouTube and Instagram (which I am doing now! moviemuse76, but it's a private account; the good ones will show up here, though), and even I don't read blogs the way I used to, so I shouldn't be surprised if there isn't anyone left to read mine (besides my mom; hi Mom!). But for those who are still reading, thank you for sticking around! I hope to have at least some occasional things to talk about, and I really do hope to post more often (meaning a couple of times a month, I hope).

I hope you all have had a nice 10 months! I look forward to "seeing" you a bit more often.

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

I've noticed over the past few months that I have been having trouble seeing the emoticons on the "currently feeling" tagline at the end of each entry. I figure if I'm having trouble, others are, too. And so, beginning in 2016, I will no longer be using the tagline or the emoticons. At least, I'm going to try. (I might miss them too much, we'll see.) I hate for my huge collection to sit unused, but I also hate for them not to make any sense because they are too small to see. Wishing you a fond farewell, emoticons. I really enjoyed you!
Currently feeling: already missing my friends

Thursday, December 03, 2015

Just received this text and photo from my husband. "Joy to the World! Crazy lady at gas station threw rock at my car when I refused to give her a ride. Policeman was more than happy to give her one."

Of all the things threatening the demise of this car (seatbelt, window, headlight), I can't believe "crazy lady throws rock at windshield" is what will be the final straw. But I have to get a job before we can get a new car.Currently feeling: not a happy camper

Saturday, November 14, 2015

She's done, she's done, she's done!!! This is "Titania" by Mirabilia, stitched on 28 ct Lambswool linen by Wichelt. I started her sometime in July 2013, and she was completed November 14, 2015. She took approximately 190 hours to stitch. For a sense of scale, she measures 19 inches (48 cm) from the top of her wing to the bottom of the ribbon under her dress, and 11 inches (28 cm) across. Two fairies down, only one more to go before I can have the set framed. Here are some other close up pictures.

Tuesday, November 03, 2015

So what was one do while one is unemployed? Try one of those hobbies you've always wanted to try, of course! This is my first ever chainmaille work. It's a pattern called Shaggy Loops. I made it from a Blue Buddha Boutique kit that was given to me as a gift by my friend Annette over a year ago. It was so fun! Including watching the instructional video, I went from opening the kit to a finished bracelet in under two hours. Annette also gave me a second kit that I hope to try in the near future.Currently feeling: loving my beautiful decorative "armor"